Corn-harvester



F0 IODEL.

PATENTED JAN. 12, 1904. E. A. JOHNSTON.

CORN HARVESTER. APPLIOATION FILED APRQ16, 1902.

7 SHEETS-SHEET}.

No. 749,298. 7 PATENTED. JAN. 12, 1904.

E. A. JOHNSTON.

CORN HARVESTBRQ PPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPP 2.

. N 0 M O D E L I HIHW PATENTED JAN. 12, 1904.

E. A. JOHNSTON. coRN HARVESTER.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 16, 1902.

m: norms PETLRS c0, moroumu, WASHINGTON. a, c.

7 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

PATENTED JAN. 12, 1904.

E. A JOHNSTON. CORN HARVESTER.

APPLICIATION FILED APR. 16, 1902.

N0 MODEL.

PATENTED JAN 12, 1904 7 SHEBTS-SHEET 5 E. A. JOHNSTON.

CORN HARVESTER.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 16. 1902.

30 MODEL.

No. 749,298. PAT-ENTBD JAN. 12, 1904.

E. A. JOHNSTON.

CORN HARVESI'ER.

APPLIOATION FILED APR. 16, 1902.

N0 MODEL. 7 SHEETS-SHEET 6.

1w. NORRIS Part": 00. mom-u-ruo.v WASHINGTON. u c,

No. 749,298. N PATENTED JAN. 12, 1904. N E. A. JOHNSTON;

CORN HARVESTER. APPLIOATION FILED APR. 16; 1902.

No MODEL. 7 $HBETS-SHEBT 7.

uwiu

N THE NORRIS Vargas on, nnotuuma, WASNINGTCN. o, c.

Patented January 12, 1904 UN T'E STATES PATENT OFFICE.

I nwAnnLJoHivsToN, or CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ssreuon TO MCCORMICK HARVESTING MACHINE COMPANY, or CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

ooR mavEs-rEa".

STEGIFIGATION forming-part of Letters Patent No.- 749,298, dated January 12, 1904.

' Applieatien filed April 1e, 902.j BerialNoflOSfiSG, (No inqdel.)

l lo Gilli/71 M it may Be it knownthat I, EDWARD A. J onNs'ron,

a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, ,county of Cook, Stateof Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements yin Corn-Harvesters; 1 and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact d e-l Iscription of the invention, such as enable others killed in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same. I I v I 1 I The invention relates more especially to that class ofmachines which harvest the cars from the stalks and leave thelatter standingin the In operation the machine straddles a row of corn and the stalks pass betweena pair of in 'clined corrugated rollswhich snap or strip off theearsw The rolls .arepositioned so that the ears an naturally into a trough that extends alongside therolls and has a traveling con-Q veyer by means of which the ears are carried back and either: deliveredfto other rolls fol? I10 is a similar. section "on the line 10 10, Fig.-

.huskingthem or dropped intoa receptacle l withoutbeing hushed. 1- The particular. improvementswill be under stood from the following description, taken in Iwherein :1 I I I I I Y su -e l a l iew. ofthe' n -i "chinea Fig. 2 .isa side elevation'of the same.

I onne ction with the accompanying drawingal I,Fig. 3 is asectional plan on the line 3 3, Fig. 2. I Fig.f4i is a detailoftheclutch between the counter-shaftand its driving-sprocket. Fig. l f is a section ofthesame on the line 5 5,,Fig. 4.?

.Fig. 6. is a seetional, plan on the line .6 6, Fig; '2; .Fig. 7 isIIa detail of one-of the husking rolls,showing the adjustmentof its pins. Fig.f 8, is a plan view, of the snappingrrolls and the framewhich carriesthem- I Fig. 9 is a cross section of the same onthe line 9 9,,Fig., 8. Fig:

jFig. 11. is a vertical gross-sectiofiof the whole I 1 machine onthe lin ell 1,1,Fig. 2,, FigllQisl a similar sectionpfithe underneath ,parts of t, t h i uregand Rigs. 1 3, and1 1 4; are respectively lonmitudinahand crossfsectional views showing he machine' on theline 12 12 6f h same lig- "I, ndetailthe husker attachment, l

, Theiinvention not particularly concerned way. restricted thereto.

toothed chains 4) o.

with the construction of the main frame of the machine, and although an especially desirable construction is illustrated herein it is to be understood that the invention is in no As shown herein, it is made up principally of angle-iron and consists of fore and aft bars a; a, one on each side of the main wheel 6, a cross-bar d joining these bars in front of the Wheel, and another longitudinal bar 0 lying about. centrally of the machine, considered as a whole, and uniting the front cross-bar (Z to a pair of cross-bars e e, to which the rear ends of the fore and aft bars a a are secured. u The opposite endsof these rear cross-bars are extended considerably beyond the bar cand at their outer ends are joined to a side bar f-I This bar and the bar 0 are parallel with each other and both extend forward of t the cross-bar (Z to form supports for the front ends g g of the prongs, which are spaced apart, as shown in Fig. 1, so as to straddle the row of stalks.

The axle a of the machineis mounted in bearings z t q, t on the fore and aft bars a a c fand carr es the main wheel at one end of .it between the bars a a and the grain-wheel at the other end of it outside the bar f.

ment n.-

The,stalk lifting and guiding prongs are erected upon the frame in a fixed position, as I best shown in; Figs. 1 and-2, where it will be I seen thatthey overlie the bars 0 and f, and t are supported on an incline by posts 0 p. The flprongs consist of flatboards q q, secured at their rear ends toa cross-plank r and at their I forward ends to the pointsg g. .They have small sprocket-idlers s s, journalcd on studs near their inner edges, a larger sprocket- Wheel t, journaled on aIsimilar stud at-their lower ends, and a driving-sprocket u at the upper end in line with, t. Around these sprocket-wheels travel the stalk-forwarding There is a short shaft w journaled in brackets at the upper ends of the boards q g, from which thedrivingrsprockets of the chains are operated. An arched sheet-metal shield m extends the entire length of each prong and covers and protects the chains, but leaving a narrow space between its edges and the upper surface of the planks for the teeth to project through.

Referring now to Figs. 8 to 12, a a denote the snapping-rolls. They are corrugated, as shown, and extend in a fore and aft direction in the vertical plane of the stalk passage-way between the prongs and a little to one side of the center of the same, as best shown in the diagram Fig. 11. These rolls are journaled at their front and rear ends in suitable bearing-brackets Z2 .7) in a supplemental frame that is composed of longitudinal side bars 0, a cross-bar d at the rear, and which is open at the front end, as shown in Fig. 8. This roll-frame is supported at its front end by rods 6 c, that are secured to the under sides of the boards Q q, the frame being adjustably connected to and supported by these. rods by means of hooks or clips f f on its side bars which book over the rods.- At its rear end the frame is upheld by supporting-links g g,

that are pivoted to side brackets h concentrically with-asl1aftd,-that is journaled in the .side bars 0 c and drives the snappingrollsby means of gearing k, the rolls themselves being intergear'ed by means ofspurpinions Z m. *The supporting-links g" g are journaled at their lower ends concentrically with the shaft n,which"extends from the inner fore andaft bar a clear across the machineto the'outer bar f and constitutes the counter-shaft, which takes power-from the traction-wheel b by means of an ordinary chain belt and distributes'it to the various parts of the machine to be driven;

1 As will be seen fromFig. 2, the roll-carrying frame'is inclined upwardly toward the fear, but at a less inclination than the overlying prongs, and theaboveB-described arrangement for supporting the frame permits its height and inclination to be'adjusted as the cond ition of the crop may require. To put-this adjustability of the-{snapping-rolls under the drivers con- 1 trol,the r0ll-frame is provided with a handlever 0, which extends within reach of the drivers seat and may have any suitable devices for locking it'indiiferent'positions, and in order to render the adjustment easy for the driver I have provided a stout coil-springp',

-" in a lifting theparts.

which'is connected to the outerside bar 0 at one end and to the supporting-link g at the other, so as to counterbalance the weight of the rear end of the frame and assist the driver The chain belt which drives the counter-shaft is denoted by g in Fig. 1. I It is thrown around a driving-sprocket 0*, which is looseon the shaft, but is normally clutched thereto by 'a spring 8', which presses it outward, so that the notches t in its hub engage a pin a projecting from the shaft. In order to permit the counter-shaft to be unprovlded a shlpper conslstmg .of a rlng o sleeved on the shaft and having a spiralflange w, which fits into a notch in the pin w,which controls the sliding movement of the sprocket on the shaft. This ring also has ahandpiece y, by means of which it can be given a partial rotation around the shaft, so as to shift the sprocket along the shaft and lock it to or unlock it from the pin. In this manner the entire operative mechanism of the machine may be thrown out of action when the machine is traveling from one place to another.

The stalk-forwarding chains and the snapping-rolls are driven from the counter-shaft, respectively, by means of chain belts a 6 the former of which runs around a drivingsprocket 0 on the shaft 'w and the latter of which is thrown around a similar sprocket d on the shaft a spring tightener 6 being applied to the chain Z2 to keep it taut in the various adjustments of the snapping-rolls and frame.

As before described, the snapping-rolls are positioned under the prongs a little to, one side of the center of the stalk passage-way. On the other side of this center line and parallel -with the snapping-rolls there is a trough f to receive the ears as they are detached by the rolls a a. The trough lies a little below the rolls, so that the ears as they are snapped off the stalks will fall naturally into it, and it extends, a's bestshown in-Figs. 2, 3, and 6, from the lower end of the rolls toand beyond their upper rear ends,'where'it turns around, so as to deliver the ears transversely to the move- .ment of the machine into' a husking attachment to be presently described or to any suitable boxor receptacle if it is not desired to husk the ears immediately. The construction of the trough is best shown in Figs. ll and 12, where it' will be seen that it has upstand- 'ingedge flanges g and an intermediate inclined flange if. The edge flanges are simply the sides of the trough; but the intermediate flange constitutes a partition dividing the trough lengthwise into two passages, one of which receives the ears from the snappingrolls and constitutes'the trough proper, and the other of which simply forms a passageway for the return ply of the ear forwarding belt 2' This belt runs around an idle sprocket f at the front end of the trough anda driving-sprocketlc at the rear end and is provided with blades or paddles Z for pushing the ears along the trough to its upper end and around the'bend, so as to deliver them to the husking I attachment. The trough is mounted in fixed position and is secured at itslower end to the inner long bar 0 and near its upper end to one of the bearings ifor the main axle/z. Its in-' clination is substantially as shown in Fig. 2.

The relative positions of the snapping-rolls and the ear-receiving trough are best shown in Fig. 11. As here seen, the rolls are provided with curved shields of m practically covering the rolls except for a-narrow passage n which is left between the adjacent edges of the shields just over the meeting-line between the rolls. The ear-receiving trough is arranged with'one edge below and a little to one side of the shield of the lower roll, and the partition if is inclined away from this edge for the twofold purpose of more effectually bars a e.

ried by arched yokesp 19 at opposite ends, and the rolls are intergeared at one end in the usual way by spur-"pinions g Side boards ets the chain runs under a sprocketi'w on the! vertically-inclinedshaft a l that is mounted in. a yoke f having a sleeve irrclosing the shaft. 1

line-shaft ci fthere directing thefalling ears into the trough and coveringand protecting the return ply of the ear-forwarding chain and its paddles.

The husking attachment consists of two pairs of rolls 0 0 that are mounted transversely, of themachinc at the rear on the cross- The bearingsfor these-rolls are car:

i 7' are erected at the sides of the rolls to pre.:

vent the ears being jolted off and form a sort.

of trough or way todeliver the husked cars at one side the machine, where they mayt be receivedinto any sort of a receptacle or simplydropped on the ground. One of: the rolls at thefdrivingend has its shaft 8 extended, as shown-in Fig. 6, and achain belt t that is thrown .around a driving-sprocket a a on thls extens on, takes power to drive the rolls from asimilar sprocket c on the c-oun;

ter-shaftn. "Qn its'wayaround thesesprocle end of a line-shaft a ithat is mountedihbea'rings underneath theinnerrnost of the crossbars 6 and extends to and beyond th'e discharge ends of the huSlltliiig-rolls, where ithas a bearingF, depending;from the side bar a on the outer side" of the traction wh'eel b. Near its driven end this lshaft has a bevel-pinion c which ge rswah asimilarpinion d on a short The yoke is bolted to the'ffore-and-aft bar 0 and also providesa hearingg 'for the shaft w ll The shaft c carif1es at its upper end the driv ing-spr'ocket 75 for" theforwarding chain, al-

fAtthe oppositeend of the "is afbevel-piniOn 9 which drives a sllior tbrossshaf t and from a driving-sproc tron this shaft a' chain belt f runs over a'd a similar pinion Z on anf'overhead shaft m whi i is mounted in bearings projecting above, the side boards at the discharge end of the" attachment. This is the shaft of the ear-discharger, which consists of a pair of endless chains a traveling around sprockets onthis and another shaft 0 over the oppos te endof the huskmg-rolls. The chains 02, n are connected together by rods p and these rods carry blades or paddles (13, that travel eon- .Qpposed by the ears on the rolls.

ivliiflr works in. the ear-re p n sprocket 2' on a stud at the rear end of t e outer side board 0 above the level i of the huski'ng-rolls. Rigid with the sprocket 2' ther fis aspur-gear which meshes with -to withdraw the pins."

stantlyin one direction above the meeting-line of the husking-rolls, so as to sweep the cars off the rolls as they are husked. The blades are preferably arranged in alternate positions on adjacent rods 19 as clearly shown in Figs. 1 and 3, and they are connected to the rods in the following manner, so asto yield when :engaging ears that are held by "their husks in the rolls 0 0 Each blade is mounted upon its rod by means of a hub 9 having a camsha ed end 8 which en ages with a collar on the rod having a similar cam-shaped end. A spiral spring a reacts against a pm in the rod and the opposite end of the hub r and holds thehub yieldingly against the collar't with suflicient tension to prevent the blades from turning on the rod under'the resistance When, however, the blades encounter ears that are for the moment held by the gripwhich the rolls have onthe husks, the spring yields and permits the blade to turn back on its rod into the position shown in dotted lines inFig. 13. It is then free to pass over the ears; but as it must be restored to working position before it again comes around the hub has a small projection 0 projecting in almost an opposite direction to theblade, and a fixed rod a is extended across the distion that the projection on the hub will strike charger near the delivery end, in such posiit just before the blade reaches the end of the bushing-rolls. This knocks the blade back into Working position again, so that when it comes around the next time 1t will hang verti' cally, as shown in Fig. 13.

The construction of he husking-roils is best illustrated in Figs. 7 and 1 1. They are hol lowmetalliccylinders. Oneofeaclfpai'risprovided with lines of l1uskingpins 0L and'the.

other with corresponding recesses a running lengthwise. The pins are seated in hollowq nipples and have springs reacting between the bottoms of the nipples and heads a 'on their inner ends. mounted in the rolls-that is to say, they are adapted to be projected from the face of the roll to a greater or less extent, dependent upon the condition of the husks or to compensate for wear,and the means for adjusting them consists of the shaft 6 extending centrally through each roll and having cone-shaped. cams b, which when the shaft is moved in An inclined screen 0 is arranged over the top The pins are adjustably- IIO of this box and under the husking-rolls, as

shown in Fig. 14:. One end of the'screen rests loosely on the rear edge of the box and the other is connected by bent straps d to eccentrics c on the shaft This arrangement affords an effective means for shaking the screen.

The construction of the machine being in detail as thus described, it is to be noted that the stalk-forwarding chains Q) o are intended to be driven at'a speed sufficient to give the stalks a rearward inclination. This enables j the snapping-rolls to handle them more rapidly and eifectually than if they act upon them when in verticalposition. The points 9 g pick by enabling the rolls to get'a better hold upon them and snap off theears quickly and easily with a more positive and certain action.

1 further feature of advantage is the position of the rolls with respect to each other whereby the stalks and ears are inclined laterally,

so that when the ears pop off they fall natus'upporting and adjusting the rolls whereby= rally into the trough beneath. The method of they may be raised and lowered and set at any required angle is an important feature of the invention, especially as the range of adjustment is considerable and is under control by the driver without stopping the machine. It

is also to be noted that the transverse arrange- ;ment 'of the husking-rolls at the rear shortens 1 'up the machine and delivers the husked corn the screen 0 v out of the way of the machine on the succeeding round, while the husks are discharged at the rear, falling down the incline formed by .shelled by the action of the husking-rolls is meantime received into the receptacle beneath the screen. The construction of the huskingrolls themselves and also the arrangement and construct on of theear-dlscharger are also important features, the advantage of which hasalready been described. The adjustment -.-of the cam-carrying shaft in the interior of :a, so that thesepins are easily adjusted,. as the condition of the crop may require.

the husking-rolls effects the simultaneous projection 01' Withdrawal of the husking-pins l The rolls 0 are shown herein as each provided with but a single line of husking-pins. They may, however, be provided with any desired number of rows; but however this may be the gearing should be soarra'nged that the rows of pins on one roll will'meet a corresponding row of holes on the adjacent roll as the rolls revolve together, thereby nipping the husks, stripping them from the ears, and carrying them down between the rolls and dropping them on top of the inclined screen, the ears being meanwhile swept lengthwise The corn which is unavoidably along the rolls and delivered at one side, as above described.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is a 1. In a corn-harvester, the combination of stalk-forwarding chains on opposite sides of the stalk passage-way, and ear-snapping rolls located under the chains, the inclination of the rolls with respect to the chains being adjustable.

2. In a corn-harvester, the combination of stalk-forwarding chains on opposite sides of the stalk passage-way, a pair of snappingrolls located under the chains toward one side of the passage-way, and an ear-receiving trough below the snapping-rolls on the other side of the passage-way.

- 3. In a corn-harvester, the combination of stalk-forwarding chains on opposite sides of the stalk passage-way, a pair of snapping-rolls located under the chains toward one side of the passage-way, that one of said rolls nearest the center of the passage-way being lower than the other.

4. In a corn-harvester, the combination of stalk-forwarding chains on opposite sides of the stalk passage-Way, ear-snapping rolls located under the chains, said rolls being bodily adjustable lengthwise the chains and also adjustable as to inclination with respect to the chains.

5. In a corn-harvester, the combination of the upwardly and rearwardly inclined prongs on opposite sides of-the passage-way, stalkforwarding chains on said prongs, a pair of snapping-rolls carried by an upwardly and rearwardly inclined frame under the prongs, a sliding connection between the frame and the prongs at the forward end, pivoted links supporting the frame at the rear, and means for adjusting the inclination of the frame.

6. In a corn-harvester, the combination of the upwardly and rearwardly inclined prongs on opposite sides of the passage-way, supporting-rods e, e, at the forward ends of the prongs, an adjustable frame underlying said prongs and carrying snapping-rolls, sliding hangers f, f, on the front end of theframe engaging the supporting-rods, pivoted links 9, g supporting the rear end of the frame, and a hand-lever 0 for adjusting the frame.

7. In a corn-harvester, the combination of the upwardly and rearwardly inclined prongs on opposite sides of the passage-way, an adjustableroll-carrying frame underlying the prongs and having a sliding connection therewith at the front end, pivoted links'g, g supporting the frame at the rear, a hand-lever 0 for eifecting the adjustment, and a spring 19' I for assisting the actionof the lever.

8. In a corn-harvester, the combination of a pair of snapping-rolls between which the standing stalks pass, an ear-receiving trough alongside said rolls, and an endless ear-conveyer both plies of which work in said trough,

the trough having a longitudinal flange or partition to cover and protect the return ply of the conveyer.

9. In a corn-harvester, the combination of rearwardly and upwardly inclined stalk lifting and guiding prongs, ear-snapping rolls eX- tending lengthwise under the prongs, and

means for separately'adjusting the inclination of the prongs and the rolls.

10. In a corn-harvester, the combination of upwardly and rearwardly inclined, rearwardlytravelingstalk-forwarding devices, means for adjusting the same vertically, ear-snapping rolls located under the forwarding devices, and means for adjusting the rolls vertically independently of the forwarding devices.

11. In a corn-harvester, the combination with rearwardly-moving stalk-forwarding de- 7 EDWARD A. JOHNSTON.

Witnesses:

CHAS. N. CHAMBERS, F. H. GERE. 

